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175 Essential Biographies

Fascinating life stories, inspirational lessons, and pitfalls to avoid, there's plenty to be gained from biographies.
Here is a selection from the across the globe and throughout the ages.
482 users · 2,920 views
 
made by Sarah Le Blanc
avg. score: 10 of 175 (6%)
required scores: 1, 3, 6, 10, 14 
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If This Is a Man - Primo Levi
If This Is a Man - Primo Levi
1
The Drowned and the Saved
The Drowned and the Saved
2
Long Walk to Freedom (Nelson Mandela)
Long Walk to Freedom
3
Nelson Mandela
Anne Frank: the Diary of a Young Girl (Anne Frank)
Anne Frank: the Diary of a Young Girl
4
Anne Frank
The Autobiography of Malcolm X (Malcolm X)
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
5
Malcolm X
Prozac Nation (Elizabeth Wurtzel)
Prozac Nation
6
Elizabeth Wurtzel
Long Way Gone
Long Way Gone
7
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou)
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
8
Maya Angelou
Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir (Jenny Lawson)
Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir
9
Jenny Lawson
Message From an Unknown Chinese Mother (Xinran)
Message From an Unknown Chinese Mother
10
Xinran
Me Talk Pretty One Day (David Sedaris)
Me Talk Pretty One Day
11
David Sedaris
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
12
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth (Col. Chris Hadfield)
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth
13
Col. Chris Hadfield
Your Voice in My Head (Emma Forrest)
Your Voice in My Head
14
Emma Forrest
Primary Colors (Joe Klein)
Primary Colors
15
Joe Klein
Goodbye to All That (Robert Graves)
Goodbye to All That
16
Robert Graves
The Life of Samuel Johnson (James Boswell)
The Life of Samuel Johnson
17
James Boswell
De Profundis (Oscar Wilde)
De Profundis
18
Oscar Wilde
Letters to a Young Poet (Rainer Maria Rilke)
Letters to a Young Poet
19
Rainer Maria Rilke
The Autobiography of Alice B. Tokias by Gertrude Stein
The Autobiography of Alice B. Tokias by Gertrude Stein
20
Diaries- Alan Clark
Diaries- Alan Clark
21
Testament of Youth (Vera Brittain)
Testament of Youth
22
Vera Brittain
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal (Jeanette Winterson)
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal
23
Jeanette Winterson
My Family and Other Animals (Gerald Durrell)
My Family and Other Animals
24
Gerald Durrell
Homage to Catalonia (George Orwell)
Homage to Catalonia
25
George Orwell
Wild (Cheryl Strayed)
Wild
26
Cheryl Strayed
Wild Swans by Jung Chang
Wild Swans by Jung Chang
27
Octavia Butler (Octavia Butler)
Octavia Butler
28
Octavia Butler
The Lives of the Artists - Giorgio Vasari
The Lives of the Artists - Giorgio Vasari
29
Walden (Henry David Thoreau)
Walden
30
Henry David Thoreau
Persepolis (Marjane Satrapi)
Persepolis
31
Marjane Satrapi
The Year of Magical Thinking (Joan Didion)
The Year of Magical Thinking
32
Joan Didion
Tuesdays With Morrie
Tuesdays With Morrie
33
Plutarch--Moralia
Plutarch--Moralia
34
Totto-Chan
Totto-Chan
35
Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
36
Empire State of Mind: Jay-Z's Journey From Street Corner to Corner Office
Empire State of Mind: Jay-Z's Journey From Street Corner to Corner Office
37
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (Frederick Douglass)
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave
38
Frederick Douglass
Autobiography of a Face (Lucy Grealy)
Autobiography of a Face
39
Lucy Grealy
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman (Robert K. Massie)
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
40
Robert K. Massie
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